September 11, 2012 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Foundation (AIAA Foundation) has announced the winners of its annual Undergraduate Individual Aircraft Design Competition. First-place honors go to Samantha Schueler from the University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kan.

Ms. Schueler will present her winning design at the 12th AIAA Aviation Technology, Integration, and Operations (ATIO) Conference, September 17–19, in Indianapolis, Ind.

The 2011–2012 contest required students to design an aircraft capable of beating the best race times ever posted by Unlimited Class Air Racers at the National Championship Air Races in Reno, Nev. Designs had to comply with the spirit of the rules of the National Championship Air Races, and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designs were not permitted.

Individuals winning award are:

First Prize: Samantha Schueler , University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kan., for her design “Cratus Air Racer.” Ron Barrett, faculty advisor.

Second Prize: Jorrit Vervoordeldonk, Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands, for his design “The Renosaur.” Roelof Vos, faculty advisor.

For more information on the AIAA Foundation Undergraduate Individual Aircraft Design Competition, please contact Rachel Andino at 703.264.7577 or rachela@aiaa.org.

Media Contact: Duane Hyland at 703.264.7558 or duaneh@aiaa.org.

The AIAA Foundation seeks to “make it exciting, make it empowering, and make it fun.” That simple, compelling philosophy drives the Foundation’s commitment to math, science, and technology education. The AIAA Foundation offers a wealth of resources to support educators from K–12 through the university level: scholarships, classroom grants, design competitions, and student conferences, improving scientific literacy and advancing the arts and sciences of aerospace. For more information on the AIAA Foundation and its programs for students, teachers, and professionals, please visit www.aiaafoundation.org.

AIAA is the world’s largest technical society dedicated to the global aerospace profession. With more than 35,000 individual members worldwide, and 90 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit www.aiaa.org.